And lastly it may be mentioned that in the single word Γραῖα, used (Il. ii. 498) to designate one of the numerous Bœotian towns, we have an isolated indication of the existence in the heroic times of the germ of the names Greece and Greek, which afterwards ascended to, and still retain, such extraordinary fame.
The Homeric text will afford us means of investigation, more or less, for the greater part of these names, but the main thread of the inquiry runs with these five; Pelasgians, Hellenes, Danaans, Argeians, Achæans.
In conjunction with the present subject, I shall consider what light is thrown by Homer on the relations of the Greeks with other races not properly Greek: the Lycians, the Phœnicians, the Sicels, the Egyptians, the people of Cyprus, and finally the Persians. The name of the Leleges will be considered in conjunction with that of the Caucones.
SECT. II.
The Pelasgians; and with these,
a. Arcadians. b. Γραικοὶ or Græci. c. Ionians. d. Athenians. e. Egyptians. f. Thraces. g. Caucones. h. Leleges.
It will be most convenient to begin with the case of the Pelasgians: and the questions we shall have to investigate will be substantially reducible to the following heads:
1. Are the Pelasgians essentially Greek?
2. If so, what is their relation to the Hellenes, and to the integral Greek nation?